Early in my priestly ministry I was working with a number of small groups in the parish and we came to the question of the Second Coming of Christ. One group was made up of young married couples, while another consisted of older, retired people in the parish. I asked both groups whether they were looking forward to this event. After all, after the prayer at Mass which concludes ‘and we wait with joyful hope for the coming of our Saviour Jesus Christ’, everyone replies ‘for the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever.’

But both groups admitted that they couldn’t honestly say that they would be glad if they knew that the Lord was coming again very soon – say, next week. I was interested in the reasons each group gave for being less than excited about the prospect of the Lord’s return. The young married couples said that they wanted to experience more of their married life, to see their children grow up, and to fulfil some of their hopes and dreams. This is understandable. Only after we have drunk deeply of the joys of this life do we feel that we might look forward to the life to come. However, the group that was now entering the twilight period had a rather different perspective. The thought of the Lord coming again created a sense of fear. Perhaps it was hearing Dies Irae (‘Day of wrath, Day of vengeance …’) at funerals that schooled us into thinking that it would be better to be dead than alive when the last trump is blown!

It was clear that the vision of these groups needed some expanding, that some new light was required to convert hearts beyond the narrow confines of usual ways of thinking. I have found that the parable of the ten bridesmaids can help with this.